Gas generating and burning apparatus



E. A. GARRETT 1,783,564

GAS GENERATING AND BURNING APPARATUS Filed Dec- 10, 1924 2 sheets-sheet 1 De'c. 2, 1930.

INVENTOR 7 ,J-Myd M ATTORNEYS nl w www Dec. 2, 1930. E. A. GARRETT GAS GENERATING AND BURNING APPARATUS Filed Dec'. 10, 1924 2 sheets-sheet 2 /m/f/vrof? mole/vers Patented Dec. 2, 193() UNITED .STATES EDMUND A. GARRETT., or Beronet/'Areas New YORK, AssrGNoR oFoNE-HA 1 FRANCIS c. SCHWAB, or MOUNT VERNON, NEW YORK PATENT worries GAS GENERATING AND BURNINGY APPARATUS Appiicafion nldnecember 1o, 1924. Serna No. 754,911.

This invention is an improvement in `a'pparatus for generating and: burning com-V bustible gases, `and relates more particularly to the type in Which the gas is generated from a liquid fuel by the action of heat. All of the'gas generated may be burned adjae cent to the gas Vgenerating parts and the heat there utilized for'suitable purposes, or all or a 'maj or portion ofthe gas may bel conducted away to be burned elsewhere, the heat for generating the gasbeing obtained from an independent source.

The main objects of my invention are tov secure noiseless operation, an intensely bril,-`

liant flame Without the need for refractory material, and substantially Vcomplete combustion with the maximum percentage of carbon dioxide. rIhe apparatus embodying my invention maybe employed for a Wide variety of furnaces or heaters for house heating, soft metal melting, etc., or `the gas may berused Vfor general heating orlfor Apovvfer purposes in an internal combustion engine. n As an important feature of my invention means are, provided for the delivery of' hquid fuel, such for instance as vfuel Voil', -to a passage heated to incandescence, .and through which a limited amountw of "air flows, whereby the air is preheatedand Vthe oil 1s vaporized or cracked aindcarried along by, or partially combined With, the air before being delivered to the burners or other'combustion apparatus.

Any carbon deposited inthe passages from the vaporized oil Will be heated to incandescence by the Wall of thepassage and burned to carbon monoxide, a combustible gas, or possibly to carbon dioxide, by :the air viassing thereoyer. .Y Y A 'y Vf ith some liquid. fuels or in some constructions it may notbe desirable to deliver enough air through .the passage to consume all of the deposited carbon, or it'mayfbe desirable lto add air to the generated gas 'beyond the point of generation. To permit this operation'l provide as a further feature of my invention a series of passages arranged in parallel, and `to `only one or certain of Which is the oil deliveredat any one time. Air may pass through all the tubes, and by delivering the Voil Vto different passages alternately, the air flowing through the passages to Which no oil is being delivered, Will consume any' carbonaceous deposit collected therein, and then unite With the gas produced in the passage or passages to vWhich oil is delivered. 'The delivery of oil and the delivery of air to the several passages maybe independently regulated-asoccasion may require, and continuons operation maintained.

As another feature I provide means for inducing the `proper flovv of air through the passages. This means may be such as permits of a Wide variation in the character of the gas produced.V Preferably the iiovv inducing Vmeans is ofthe injector type andis supplied xvithan aeroform or eXpansible fluid such as steam,'compr`essed air, or illuminating gas. By using steam a type of gas analogous to Water gas is produced, in Which the hydro* gen of thesteam forms one of the combustible constituents of theresulting gas. y The steam may begenera'tedby the same source of heat that raises the'gas generating` passage or Vpassages to incandescence. If illuminating or other combustible gas be employed at the ector,the burning of this gas may be used to preheat'the passage before the supply of oil is admitted, and if both oil and combustible injector gas be used, a lesseramount of oil'is needed'for ggiving'a. desired amount of heat. Therfiow inducing means, if of the in.V jector type, maybe disposed before or behind thencandescent tube or tubes so as to either 'force or draw theair through the tube. VThe flow inducing means may be a suitable fan or blower, and this may be used continuously or only in. starting, and until -steamcan be Vgenerated to operate a steam'jetfor inducing the flow. If illuminating or other combustible gas be employed for inducing the flow and for prelieating, the fan may be started only when this is shut off.

In the accompanying drawings I have illustrated rather diagrammatically a construction embodying my invention. This form is to be considered in an illustrative rather than a limiting sense, as various changes may be made in the construction and arrangement of parts, and various parts together with their function, may be omitted or altered within the scope of my invention as defined in the appended claims.

In these drawings:

Fig. 1 is a central vertical section through one form of apparatus embodying my invention, said section being taken on the line 1-1 of Figi 3.

F ig. 2 is a vertical section on the line 2-2 of 3, and

Fig. 3 is a transverse section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1.

In the construction illustrated there is employed a retort or gas generator in the form of a tube 10. This tube is shown as extending in a horizontal direction, although it is evident that it might be inclined or vertical, or in the form of a coil. Means are provided as hereinafter described, for heating at least a portion of this tube or retort to incandescence, whereby oil or other liquid fuel delivered to the incandescent zone is vaporized and cracked or partly burned. The means illustrated for delivering the liquid fuel to the incandescent zone is a tube 11 extending longitudinally through t-he outer tube 10 and terminating within the incandescent zone portion of the retort. Means are provided for inducing a current of air through the tube 1() to unite with or carry along the vaporized oil.

In practice I preferably employ a plurality of these generator or retort tubes 10 which are connected in parallel in the system. As shown in Fig. 3 there are live of these tubes which are connected together at the inlet end by a manifold 1Q and at the outlet end by a manifold 13. Oil is delivered from a suitable manifold to the plurality of oil delivering tubes l1. It is not essential that there be oil delivery for each of the tubes 10, as certain of the tubes may be employed solely for the preheating of air, while others are used as generating tubes. Any suitable means may be employed for controlling the delivery of air through the several tubes 10, as for instance separate dampers 14 in the branches leading to said tubes from one of the manifolds. The delivery of oil through the several tubes 11 is controlled by suitable valves 15.

In the operation of the retorts the tubes 10 are Vfirst heated to incandescence and then oil Vis delivered to certain of them. This oil is vaporized or cracked and is carried along by the flow of air and at the same time there may be a deposit of coke or other carbonaceous matter on the wall of the tubes receiving oil, due to the insutiicient supply of air to burn such carbonaceous matter. In practice the oil may be delivered through two of the three pipes l1 and the valves 15 intermittently operated so that when an objectionable amount of solid carbonaceous matter has deposited, the oil in one tube may be shut oit and the oil turned on in the other, whereby the flow of air in the incandescent tube having the carbonaceous deposit, will act to burn olf such deposit and produce carbonio oxide gas which unites with the gas produced in the other tubes at the outlet manifold 13. Preferably means are employed whereby the operator may inspect the interior of the retort tubes during operation. As shown, each tube has an extension piece 16 in alignment therewith, and projecting to the exterior of the casing, and within this extension is a quartz glass window 17. The operator may look through this window to watch the character of the reaction tal-:ing place in the retort, and determine the neces sity for shifting` the valves or d an'ipers to bn rn off deposit. The portion of the extension 16 beyond the quartz window may have ports 18 through the wall thereof, whereby a small amount of air may enter the casing through this outer extension and maintaiii the temperature of the latter comparativelj,Y low, as well as convey to the retort chamber any gas that may escape past the window.

Beyond the collecting` or outlet mani fold a conduit 19 entends to the point where the gas is to be burned. In the specific construction illustrated the retorts are mounted within a main casing 20 which may serve as the base for a household heating furnace, or for any other desired heating purposes, and the gas conduit 1S) extends to burners within this casine', and so positioned as to maintain the ret ort tubes 10 at the proper incandesccnee. its shown, there are a plurality of burners 21 having elongated slotsor rows of apertures disposed between adjacent tubes 10,'an d below the same, whereby the from each burner passes between two adjacent tubes and then upwardly to the body of the casing 20. The cross sectional area of the passages within the burners decreases from the supply end, so that there will be a substantially uniform rate of flow and a substantially uniform flame throughout the length of each slot. rThe several burners may be connected to the gas conduit by a manifold 22. If it is desired to conduct any of the generated gas to be burned at some distant point, a condu't may be employed, said conduit leading from the manifold 22 or a point adjacent thereto.

The lower portion of the casing 2O is preferably so constructed that the admissizin of air thereto for supporting the combustion at weasel theburner 2l, lmaybe properly regulated. As Y a supply conduit 26 which may in some cases lead from the interiorV of the casing 20,!but

preferably leads'trom the exterior th rect.,

ln some cases l ma .rel upon the `chi one' draft forinducing the ovv of air through'the J supply conduit 26 and the several ret-orte, al-

thoughu is preferable to provide meansjlor inducing the flow attl'ie desired rate. Qns means which may be employed'tor this pur- -pose is` anl injector nozzle 27 mounted in a Venturiserction 28 ot the conduit 1 9. "This nozzle is provided with means forsupplying thereto an aeroform fluid Whichniay vary ac-` cording to economicconditions or the character of the apparatus inl connection Withvvhich the burnedjgas or 4generated heat'is to-be employedll may supply steam, co1npre^sed air,

or combustible gas under pressure,V Vto this 1 nozzle and the character ot the resultant will be varied accordingly. The nozzle at its outer end may have a plurality of inlets 29, 30 and 3l eachhaving suitable controlling valves wherebyV 'steam may be delivered through the inlet 29coinpressed air `through thefinlet 30, or illuminating or other combusti- .g ble gas underpressure through the inlet 3l. By using the combustible gas the latter 'may be used for a limitedperiod-before the oil is" turned on,`so tha-t this gas will be consumed at thefburners 2l`fand`heat the tubes l0 to the vapori/zing point ot'oil. fitter this prehe ing has taken place the foiljinay be turned ou and the supply of `gas continued or shut oft and replaced byother flow inducing means.4 lf steam is to be emoloyed as the tlow inducingmeans,I there is preterably provided means whereby a .portion ot the heat is util lized for Vgen'enating the same. As .slioivn, there isa'steain generating tube). above the burners land havinganinlet tube 38 'for irater under pressure. This Water is adi itted at the desired slow rate, so that thed'evice operates as a flash boiler, and the steam is conductn edthrough a pipe dtothe steam, inlet 2.9.

There is preferably provided a valve Y 35 to 'preventtoohigh pressure in the flash boiler. l Y

' ln'using illuminating gas, steam, or compressedv air as' the injecting means, the injector may be positioned beyond the retort so as to draw air through the latter,y and Without having the injector fluid pass through ltheA retort,.or it may be positionedin vadvance ot the retort f so that'such injector tiuid doesV pass through the retort. For steam it preferable that `the steam jet be positionedV in advance of the retort so that Vthe steam passes through the incandescent zone.

'As shown, the tube 26 has a Veut-uri sec-" tion 36 in connection with which there 1s emf ployed an injector nozzle 37 which may receivesteam from the conduit 34 through aV conduit 38, or lmay receive compressed air or compressed combustible' gas such asv illumi-' nating. gas through an inlet pipe Beyond the injector nozzle 37 there is shown a blower O ot the Vcentrifugal or fan type, whereby the tan may be used alone or in conjunction :With the otlie1tlow inducing means. The conduit'E/l' has al damper ll whereby Vthe amount vof air admitted'may be controlled, andthe inlet to the bloweris also preferably provided with a damper e2 tor controlling the vflow at this point. The blower should be ot the constant speed typeivhereby When the lproper conditions have been established they- Will remain constant 'and not require frequent readiustment to maintain operative condition-s.

'l llith mysimproved apparatus very loW the first cycle in each retort ycoke formed,

While in. the nel-1t succeeding cycle the oil is shut ott and thee-olie is transformed into Acarbon monoxide or carbon dioxide.

Although l do not fish to beV limited to any particular size ot any of the parts, it is evident Vthat there is certain critical relationship the parts necessary for securingsatishietory operation. lt the generator tubes be too large, the tloiv therethrough Will have to be correspoiulinoly slow, or there Will be too large amountbt ai;` pass through "he'tubes in respect'to the amount ot' oil converted into rlhe tubes should be ot such length as to satisfactorily preheat the air before it reaches the point at which the oil is delivered.r Experiments indicate that the diameter should be somewhere about one inch morder/that the proper rate ot tlow ot' the air may be maintained and the tube maintained -'.icandescence'vvvithoujt too great cooling etliect by the air. The length ot the Atubes may vary Within Wide limits. and

dependent uponthe pres ire and the draft or airflow and the rate ot oil How. The limited combustion of the oil with the air in the retort tubes causes the production ot Vcarbon Vmonoxide due to the excess ot fuel, and this leo Iso

posited and burned ofi". For instance if a predetermined amount of coke may be burned off in one-half the time which is required for the deposit of that amount of coke, then oil may be delivered through two of the oil tubes and shut off in only one, if three are used as illustrated.

rhe apparatus is preferably so adjusted or regulated as to produce carbon monoxide in the retorts, but it will be evident that if the colic be burned directly to carbon dioxide the heat of such burning will be advantan geously used in maintaining the proper temperature of the retorts.

In the foregoing l have referred to the retorts being heated to incandescence. This is not essential during the vaporizing stage, as it is important that the temperature be only sufficiently high to insure the substantially complete vaporization of the oil. The use of a temperature sufficiently high to give incandescence is important during the burning oli' of any deposits in the retorts.

The same generator 32 may be used solely for the delivery of steam to the injector nozzle 27 or the injector nozzle 37 or both, and in case steam is not used as the injector means the supply of water to the steam generator may be shut of. It will of course be evident that the steam generator may be employed for the continuous projection of steam, even though the steam injectors are not used. The steam generated may be conducted from the apparatus through the conduits 30, 31 or 39, or through other suitable means. ln case the apparatus is not equipped or connected for the delivery thereto of combustible gas at the injectors, and there preheated, it will be evident that other means might be employed for bringing the generator tubes up to the desired temperature. Heat may be applied to the exterior thereof from any suitable source or the oil delivered may be burned so that combustion of the oil takes place directly in the retort until the wall of the latter becomes heated to the desired extent. The regulation of the air and oil supplies may then be readj usted so as to stop the direct burning at these points and to secure the main comn bustion at the burners 21. For igniting the combustible mixture in the retorts a spark plug or other ignition means might be employed.

The conduit connecting the manifolds l2 and 13 is preferably inclined and has a sump 43 into which there will drain any unvaporized oil or condensate in the system. Any such liquid may be drawn off through a valve outlet 4.4.

My improved apparatus possesses many advantages over other apparatus heretofore employed. Many of these will be apparent from the foregoing` description. lt will be noted that there is no needle point orifice for the oil, and therefore there is less liability of the outlets becoming clogged, and low pressure may be employed With little or no noise. By controlling the air in relation to the flow of oil a blue or a White flame can be produced as desired. There is no liability of stoppage of the operation as the oil and the supply of fuel continues, as any clogging of one pipe will not interfere with the continuous delivery of oil through the other. Comparatively expensive and relatively high volatile oil is not necessary. As the apparatus has very7 large orifices and very low gas pressure, there is a freedom from atmospheric pulsations which are so annoying in the usual burning of oil. Thus I am able to secure uniform and smokeless combustion without the usual tendency to go out.

lt is not necessary to have incandescent furnace walls as are required in many constructions, and the rate of combustion and character of flame obtained is easily controlled by varying the rate of flow of air through the generator.

Having thus described my invention, what l claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is l. A gas generator including a plurality of passages arranged in parallel, means for heating said passages, means for delivering air through all of said passages, and means for delivering a liquid fuel to the interior of one or more of said passages.

2. An apparatus of the class described, including a plurality of passages arranged in parallel, means for heating a zone of each passage to incandescence, a manifold for supplying air to all of said passages, a gas outlet manifold connected to the opposite ends of said passages, and means for delivering liquid fuel to the interior of one or more of said passages.

3. A gas generator including a plurality of passages arranged in parallel, means for controlling the flow of air through said passages, means for controlling the delivery of liquid fuel to said passages whereby the liquid fuel may be delivered to any one or more of said passages, and a manifold connected to the outlets of all of said passages.

t. A plurality of generators each having a zone adapted to be heated to incandescencc and having inlets to receive air and outlets for the delivery of gas, a manifold connected to said outlets, oil pipes terminating in certain of said generators for the delivery of oil to said incandescent zones, means for controlling the flow of oil whereby air may pass through all generators but oil may be intermittently shut off from one yor more while flowing to another.

5. In combination a series of generator tubes one serving for preheating air and another having an oil inlet intermediate of the ends thereof and serving for heating air `and vaporizing oil, and a manifold connect' ing the outlets of said tubes.

6` In combination aV series of generator tubes one serving for pre'heatlng air and another having an oil inlet intermediate of the ends thereof and serving for heating air diate of the ends of the tube, means for heat-.

ing the oil at said point to the vaporizing temperature of the oil, and a transparent closure for one end of the tube whereby the operation Within the tube may be witnessed, a supporting casing having an aperture through which said last mentioned end of the tube extends, and apertures in the Wall of said tube between said closure and the casing Wall.

8. In combination, a plurality of generator tubes, a manifold connected thereto, an air supply pipe, a valve for controlling said pipe, separate dampers for controlling the delivery of air from said manifold to each ofsaid generator tubes, and a second manifold connected to the outlet ends of each of said tubes.

9. In combination a plurality of generator tubes, means for delivering oil to certain of said tubes intermediate of the ends thereof, a manifold connected to the inlet of said tubes, an air conduit leading to said manifold and having a Venturi section and an inliector nozzle for maintaining the fl'ovv of air through the tubes, burner means,'and connections between said burner means and the outlets of said generator tubes.

10. In combination. a plurality of generator tubes, a plurality of elongated burners each of a length substantially equal to the length of said tubes and disposed thereb-elow and therebetween, vvhereby the generator tubes are heated throughout substantially their entire length, means for delivering oil to certain of said tubes intermediate of the ends thereof, and means for delivering `combustible gas from said tubes to said burners.

11. A gas generator including a series of retorts arranged in parallel and maintained at an incandescent heat, a common means for maintaining a draft of air through the retorts, independent means for delivering fuel oil to each retort, the cross sectional area of the retorts, the rate of flow and quantity of air and the rate of oil delivery being such that a substantially complete cracking and vaporising of the oil takes place in the air current.

retorts arranged in parallel and maintained at an incandescent heat, a common means for maintaining a draft of air through the retorts, independent means for delivering fuel 12. A generator including a series 'of' oil to each retort, the cross-sectional area of theretorts, the rate of doivfand quantity of ,air and the rate of oil delivery being such that a substantially complete cracking and vaporizing of the oil takes place in theV air current, an d means for optionally cutting off 'f the oil supply to any retort to permita carbon deposit to be oxidized and burned out by the air flowing therethrough.

l13. A device vof the class described in claim 11 wherein a )ortion' of the frases oremirated Y 5 I: D r

in the retorts are burned to retain th-e retorts at an incandescent heat.

. lt. A'device of the class described in claim 11, vwherein a steam injector is used to force may. be drawn by the flue draft, a series off burners,` a common gas manifold therefor, a battery of retorts arranged above the burners and delivering gas to said manifold, independent oil delivery "pipes for introducing n.8.0 air through the retorts and wherein a nortion f j i i fuel oil to the retorts, a header from which a draft of airis maintained through allof the retorts, and means for forcing the gas produced by the vaporized oil and the air to theV burners. 4 i' ing an opening therein through Which air may be draWnby the tluedraft, a seri-es of burners, a; common gas-manifold therefor, a battery of retorts arranged above the burners and delivering gas to said manifold, independent oil delivery pipes for introducing fuel oil to the retorts, a header from which a draft of air is maintained through all of the retorts, and means for forcing the gas produced by the vaporized oil and the air to the burners, said retorts having sight openings therein arranged in an offset portion of the housingfto permit observation of the process of reaction.

L 16. A heating unit including al housinghav- 17. A heating unit including a housing having an opening therein through Which air may be dravvn y the flue draft, a series of burners, a common gas manifold therefor, a battery'of retorts arranged above the burners and delivering gas to said manifold, independent loil delivery pipes for introducing fuel oil to the retorts, a header from Which a draft of air is maintained through all of the retorts, and means for forcing the gas produced by the vapor-ized oil and the air to the burners, said burners including elongated trough-like members having burner slots veX- tending throughout their length and including means for deflecting and distributing gas to producev substantially uniform flame through the length of the slots.

Y 18. A heating unit including a housing having anv opening therein through which air may be drawn by the flue draft, a series of burners, a common gas manifold therefor,

a battery of retorts arranged above the burners and deliif'ering gas to said manifold, independent oil delivery pipes for introducing fuel oil to the retorts, a header from which a draft of air is maintained through all of the retorts. and means for forcing the gas produced by the vaporized oil and the air to the burners, said burners being arranged intermediate pairs of rctorts, whereby to maintain the retorts at an incandescent heat.

19. A heating unit including a housing having an opening therein through which air may be drawn by the flue draft, a series of burners, a common gas manifold therefor, a battery of retorts arranged above the burners and delivering gas to said manifold, independent oil delivery pipes for introducing fuel oil to the retorts, a header from which a draft of air is maintained through all of the retorts, means for forcing the gas produced by the vaporized oil and the air to the burners, means for controlling the rate of air flow through the retorts, and means for controlling the rate of flow of auxiliary air introduced by the flue draft.

20. In combinationA an air delivery pipe, a fan for delivering air therethrough, a manifold receiving air from said pipe, a series of generator tubes connected to said manifold, means for delivering oil to the interior of certain of said tubes, a second manifold receiving Aair .or gas from all of said tubes, a gas delivery conduit from said manifold, a second manifold receiving gas from said last mentioned conduit, a plurality of burners connected to said last mentioned manifold and disposed below and between said tubes, means for regulating the iiow of air through said tubes, and means for regulating the flow of oil to said tubes, one of said conduits having a Venturi section and an injector for eXpansible iiuid to act in conjunction with or independently of the blower to maintain the How of air through the tubes.

21. In combination a plurality of generator tubes, a plurality of burners, a manifold at the outlet of the tubes whereby iiuid passes through the tubes in parallel, a manifold at the inlet of said burners for delivering fluid to the burners in parallel, and a conduit connecting said manifolds.

22. In combination a plurality of generator tubes, a. plurality of burners, a manifold at the outlet of the tubes whereby fluid passes through the tubes in parallel, a manifold at the inlet of said burners for delivering fluid to the burners in parallel, and a conduit connecting said manifolds, said conduit having a Venturi section and an injector nozzle for an expansible aeroform fluid.

2.3. In combination a plurality of generator tubes, a plurality of elongated burners disposed therebelow, whereby the generator tubes are heated throughout Substantially 

